Senate Advises Pres. Weah To Establish A Transitional Justice Commission Instead Of A War Crimes Court
Amidst the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission’s on-going hearing in the proposal for the establishment of a war and economic crimes court for Liberia, the Liberian Senate has given its position on the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), presented to them since the TRC completed its obligation in 2008, and responded to President George Manneh Weah’s request for the National Legislature to look into the TRC instrument and provide guidance as to which way the government should go, recommending the establishment of a Transitional Justice Commission (TJC) to build on the work of the TRC.
On September 19, 2019, President Weah wrote the Liberian Senate and requested its advice on how to proceed with the implementation of the TRC report; in so doing, the Senate says it has completed the revision of the President’s request under the following framework and scope: 1) review of the Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement (ACPA) signed by all warring factions and political parties on August 18, 2003, which mandated the establishment of the TRC and contains its overall objective; 2) the Act Establishing the TRC; 3) review of steps taken by the administration of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf in respect of the implementation of the recommendations of the TRC; 4) an Act of the Legislature granting amnesty to all participants in the civil crisis from civil and criminal liabilities and responsibilities; 5) Supreme Court Opinion on some of the issues arising from the TRC Report; review of some international precedents regarding transitional justice, such as the South African model and the Sierra Leonean civil conflicts; 7) Dissenting Report filed by some of the Commissioners of the TRC; and 8) the issue of whether restorative justice or retributive justice should be meted out to perpetrators of crimes during the course of Liberia’s civil crisis.
In the view of the Liberian Senate, the TRC was proposed at the ACPA to purposely provide a forum that would address issues of impunity, as well as opportunity for both the victims and perpetrators of human rights violations to share their experiences, in order to get a clear picture of the past to facilitate genuine healing and reconciliation.
According to the Senators, it is clear that the purpose for the establishment of the TRC was to propose measures which will ultimately reconcile the people, and not to open old wound and divide them further, and based on this, programs designed by the administration of ex-President Sirleaf, such as the Strategic Roadmap for National Healing, Peace-building and Reconciliation and the implementation of the Palava Hut Mechanism, all pointed to the system of restorative justice as opposed to retributive justice.
In their recommendation to President Weah, the Liberian Senate requested that President Weah set up a Transitional Justice Commission (TJC) to determine why the TRC recommendations have not been fully and timely implemented, determine whether the TRC fully complied with its mandate, examine the effect of the August 2003 Act of Legislature granting general amnesty to all participants in the civil crisis, analyze credibility/legitimacy issues surrounding the Final Report of the TRC, examine the effect of the ratification of Liberia to the Rome Statute in 2004, consider the separation of the establishment of a war crimes court from the establishment of an economic crimes court, review the work and recommendations of the TRC and plan and implement programs and activities to solicit the opinion of the majority of Liberians on the issue of retributive justice versus restorative justice.
The Senate also recommended, “The Transitional Justice Commission (TJC) establishment should be enacted into law; while the TJC is working on the issues discussed above, the President should without delay continue the National Palava Hut Program, an accountability and traditional dispute resolution mechanism, to foster healing and reconciliation within communities across the country; and without delay the government should establish a Reparation Trust Fund. ‘The Trust Fund is aimed at restoring victims and communities worst affected by the conflict. It will help provide psychosocial relief for victims suffering from psychological and physical scars of the war and other community-based reparation programs,’ as indicated in the TRC Report.”
The final recommendation of the Liberian Senate to the Liberian President was that, in line with one of the recommendations of the TRC, the President of Liberia should offer an official apology on behalf of the state to the thousands of victims and the Liberian people in general for its role in the long conflict and for the injuries and losses suffered by individuals and communities as consequences of the civil crisis.
From the look of things, it appears like the Senate is recommending that the President settles down for restorative justice. Restorative justice is an approach to justice that focuses on addressing the harm caused by crime while holding the offender responsible for their actions, by providing an opportunity for the parties directly affected by the crime—victims, offenders and communities—to identify and address their needs in the aftermath of a crime (Canadian Department of Justice definition). This is contrary to the establishment of a war and economic crimes court (retributive justice). Retributive justice is a system that is based on the punishment of offenders rather than on rehabilitation.
Observers are of the opinion that, while the US Congress Committee on Foreign Affairs is looking into a proposal for the establishment of a war and economic crimes in Liberia, the Liberian Senate has recommended that the Weah administration go on with the establishment of a Transitional Justice Commission, and it may become a hard task if the US Congress concludes that the court be established in Liberia.